Can someone answer my teenagers question!

[Tom]

Would that be true?
I mean the cells duplicate and duplicate and the animal grows inside of the shell. The animal becomes physically larger. The cells multiply inside the egg without actually any thing else entering.
This is very interesting.

Those cells multiply, yes, but where is the raw material they are using to build new cells coming from? Inside the egg. The cells are not getting the building blocks of life that they need from any external source. The nutrients inside that egg are converted from one form of matter into another form of matter. The weight doesn't change. The only thing that can enter or leave that egg and its membranes is water. Any weight change up or down is from water weight gain or loss.

 

[WithLisa]

The only thing that can enter or leave that egg and its membranes is water.

What about air? The egg needs oxygen and has to get rid of carbon dioxide and other waste products.

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

My first question is about your avatar. You are asking about spur thighs, Testudo graeca, but it looks like a horsfield in your avatar. You have both species?

The weight of an egg will only change based on the water content. Damper incubation media and higher humidity will generally cause the egg to take on more water and weigh more. Horsfield eggs kept too damp will actually swell and crack open from absorbing too much water. Like wise drier incubation media and lower humidity can cause and egg to lose some moisture during the corse of incubation and then weigh less.

If water content stays the same, the weight of the egg should remain unchanged during incubation. The nutrients in the egg are simply converted into the various baby tortoise tissues. The weight should not change because of any of those processes.

That's awfully scientific. hahahahahahhahaahhhahhahah. Just kidding around, good answer.

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

What about air? The egg needs oxygen and has to get rid of carbon dioxide and other waste products.

You are correct @WithLisa air does actually change the weight of the egg, but in such a small amount it would be difficult to notice that difference alone, alongside the weight changed caused by water movement. Tracking that respiration with radio tagged oxygen isotopes was a failed thesis interest of mine (Advisers rejected the idea). I have much literature on the topic. That is one of the drivers behind the incubators that people set up that have a night time temperature drop, to help facilitate egg respiration.

The yolk does decrease in size and mass during incubation as does the whites. Metabolic waste is respired out as C02 along with some little bit put into an area that is not inside the membrane that holds the yolk or the whites. (These membranes are better called "envelopes" less we confuse cellular biologists with the term membrane, now that's a funny thing for a biologist, Gary Larson would laugh).

 

[Anyfoot]

Good afternoon guys, my teenager has got interested in our 4 spur theigh tort eggs and is now doing a project at school about tortoises, and has asked a interesting question but I don't know the answer lol....

Do tortoise eggs get heavier if fertile if so will a infertile tortoise egg be light and have a huge weight difference?

I did reply saying I expect so but you don't weigh the eggs u leave them alone, but I did say I will ask you guys. Thanks in advance.

Nice question. One I've been wondering about for a while. My thoughts are with Tom. If nothing gets in or out it can't change weight no matter the transformation.

Does water weigh more when it's frozen?

 

[Tom]

What about air? The egg needs oxygen and has to get rid of carbon dioxide and other waste products.

Yes you are correct. I was referring to things that would change the weight of the egg on a conventional gram scale that any of us might use. Thank you for the clarification.

 

[Tom]

That's awfully scientific. hahahahahahhahaahhhahhahah. Just kidding around, good answer.

Would you say that it is borderline mumbo jumbo, or is that me reaching just a little too far?

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

Nice question. One I've been wondering about for a while. My thoughts are with Tom. If nothing gets in or out it can't change weight no matter the transformation.

Does water weigh more when it's frozen?

Yeah, well it's not a no in no out system, so weight does change, air and water go in and out. It's like a little living thing. There is even some small amount of excretion. Over all weight may appear constant, but stuff is moving in and out. How would a 19 gram tortoise come out of a 21 gram egg (when laid) when the left over shell after hatching weighs 3 grams? How indeed?? It is not a simple additive or subtractive process, but one of both addition and subtraction of materials. That darn nature, why can't it be more simple. so we can just know it by osmosis, opps what's osmosis? Another word not on the back of a cereal box. Osmosis: a process by which molecules tend to pass through a semipermeable membrane from a less concentrated solution into a more concentrated one, thus equalizing the concentrations on each side of the membrane. Sorta like what happens in those darn eggs.

 

[Peach]

Thank you all for your input, I have enjoyed reading all comments, if I have any more questions I will get my mum to ask you all again, plus I will tell you my grade when I get it as you all helped so much. From Chelsea )

 

[Anyfoot]

Yeah, well it's not a no in no out system, so weight does change, air and water go in and out. It's like a little living thing. There is even some small amount of excretion. Over all weight may appear constant, but stuff is moving in and out. How would a 19 gram tortoise come out of a 21 gram egg (when laid) when the left over shell after hatching weighs 3 grams? How indeed?? It is not a simple additive or subtractive process, but one of both addition and subtraction of materials. That darn nature, why can't it be more simple. so we can just know it by osmosis, opps what's osmosis? Another word not on the back of a cereal box. Osmosis: a process by which molecules tend to pass through a semipermeable membrane from a less concentrated solution into a more concentrated one, thus equalizing the concentrations on each side of the membrane. Sorta like what happens in those darn eggs.

Is there any species of tort that the eggs are incubated in absolute dry air?

 

[Anyfoot]

Yeah, well it's not a no in no out system, so weight does change, air and water go in and out. It's like a little living thing. There is even some small amount of excretion. Over all weight may appear constant, but stuff is moving in and out. How would a 19 gram tortoise come out of a 21 gram egg (when laid) when the left over shell after hatching weighs 3 grams? How indeed?? It is not a simple additive or subtractive process, but one of both addition and subtraction of materials. That darn nature, why can't it be more simple. so we can just know it by osmosis, opps what's osmosis? Another word not on the back of a cereal box. Osmosis: a process by which molecules tend to pass through a semipermeable membrane from a less concentrated solution into a more concentrated one, thus equalizing the concentrations on each side of the membrane. Sorta like what happens in those darn eggs.

Can an infertile egg change in weight due to absorption of air and water? Is this what can cause the infertile egg to blow?

 

[thehowards]

What about " matter can't be created or destroyed" without some magic.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Thank you all for your input, I have enjoyed reading all comments, if I have any more questions I will get my mum to ask you all again, plus I will tell you my grade when I get it as you all helped so much. From Chelsea )

Thanks, Kid!
That was actually a very good question.

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

Is there any species of tort that the eggs are incubated in absolute dry air?

Irrelevant question, no such thing as "absolute dry air" unless you are asking about an egg subjected to an experimental condition in a controlled environment. In which case the egg would explode unless that environment was very gradually applied to the egg, and for what?

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

Can an infertile egg change in weight due to absorption of air and water? Is this what can cause the infertile egg to blow?

Yes, see "osmosis".